Around 117 people in Islamabad have fallen prey to dengue fever during the last 24 hours as the virus shows no sign of abating, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Friday.  

According to the district health officer (DHO), presently there are 932 patients of dengue in the federal capital while five people have lost their lives to the contagious disease so far.

Out of 117 fresh cases, 80 were reported from the rural areas of the federal capital, thus bringing the total number of people infected with the virus in these areas to 625, while 37 cases were detected in Islamabad city itself during the period under review, thus bringing the total number of patients in the city to 307. 

Meanwhile, Capital Development Authority (CDA) is going ahead with its anti-dengue drive as special teams constituted by the Health Services Directorate are spraying anti-mosquito pesticides.

These teams are particularly active in the congested areas of Islamabad city where people are more prone to get infected and in the suburban rural areas.

According to the CDA administration, these teams are working under a well-thought-out strategy to eliminate the larvae so that the virus could be stopped from spreading.

In this connection, the CDA is not only spraying chemicals in the high-risk areas of the capital but is also running a campaign to make people aware of the disease.

The teams, especially formed to deal with the virus, collected 322 samples from different parts of the city yesterday (October 7, Thursday), out of which 15 were tested positive.

Around 500 brochures have also been distributed in the capital under the awareness campaign, while the city has been distributed into zones in order to make the anti-dengue campaign successful.

CDA has appealed to the residents of Islamabad to cooperate with the government departments and ensure proper drainage of water so that the growth of dengue larvae could be prevented.